Adam LaRoche and his son

oop the journalism critic is a hoot, especially since his journalism triumphs include ranking the best bake sales in town.

 

It's curious to me that no one was able to find a player to say these things, even anonymously. I recall covering the clubhouse after games, and there were some straight shooters in there who would give you the low down. I remember a player telling me, for example, that a reliever didn't retaliate for something that happened earlier in the game because the pitcher and hitter were friends from the year before. That's just one example, but the point is that baseball clubhouses are relatively easy to work, especially for guys on that beat who have been around forever.

 

Would it be the circumstances of a clubhouse that would make it difficult?

I can see not criticizing a teammate either anonymously, or off the record, if another teammate is getting dressed right next to you.

This would seem to be a case where you'd want to use the sources you've developed over the years, and contact a player outside of the clubhouse, where he could speak more freely.

 

Speaking of people talking out of their asses, JH has no knowledge whatsoever of my journalism career. I can tell you that I've never written about a bake sale.

 

In the incident I'm referring to, everyone else had cleared out, including reporters, and there was a down-to-earth player finishing up getting dressed. He had overheard my line of questioning, and was like, "Hey, come here ..." and explained what the deal was.

Guys get scoops all the time. There would be a crowded clubhouse, and you'd open the papers the next morning, and somebody would have an enormous exclusive, on the record, from the clubhouse. There's a clubhouse code among reporters - you don't move in on another guy's one-on-one.

 

I was thinking more that a player would be worried about being overheard criticizing a popular teammate by another teammate, not that the reporter would be concerned about being overheard by another reporter.

 

There's plenty of opportunities to get this story in there.

 

If co-workers resent your absence in such times, I'd suggest looking for new co-workers when the time is right. A schedule of surgeries on a newborn should provide enough justification by itself for time off.

 

Didn't mean to reference myself here.

I work for myself and my customers have been incredibly understanding.

 

Good to hear.

 

I do both. Perhaps you couldn't handle that kind of reading workload, but that sounds like a you problem.

 

To the extent that holds true anymore...

There isn't any question the Internet has changed the business and changed how often sources want to talk. Their ass gets slammed on Twitter and on talk radio, and people get convinced by that, they're wooed by that. Has had a major chilling effect.